


Strands of Silk

by subspacecommunication (nattherat)



Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Alien Biology, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Illustrated, Interspecies Romance, It's not easy to know how to warn for it but I do want to warn for it, references to some bad stuff in Saru's past to do with being farmed, that's why I gave it a higher rating too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-25 21:18:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13221462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nattherat/pseuds/subspacecommunication
Summary: “I worry, even now, that I am unsuitable as an officer. There is… a word for me, in your Standard. Nuòfū.”A decade into the voyages of the USS Shenzhou, spending her evenings in Saru’s quarters after his seasons and helping him process the new silk is a regular tradition for Captain Philippa Georgiou. Something troubles her oldest and closest friend however, and Georgiou does her best to set his fears at ease.





	Strands of Silk

**Author's Note:**

> As usual, I have to give some context, I'm sorry haha! This uses the alien redesigns from my tumblr. Kelpien are six-limbed ungulates that also have formicidae features such as ganglia and silk glands. To put it into some more relatable terms, they're kind of like if you mushed a gazelle and a weaver ant into a single being. Please see the Kelpien tag on my tumblr for art and write-ups about them: http://subspacecommunication.tumblr.com/tagged/kelpien It might be a bit hard to do considering the fic references the redesign, but feel free to imagine humanoid Saru if you prefer!  
> This fic is set before the show begins by about two or three years (but since it also has redesigned Kelpien, it's kind of an AU by default).

By the time she finished running through staff reports, including Burnham’s usual thorough accounts, her chronometer read 20:15. Forty five minutes late. She tapped the intercom at her computer, making a start to remove her uniform as she spoke apologetically.

 

“Georgiou to Saru. I’m sorry it took so long. I’ll be along momentarily.”

 

“That is quite all right Captain, I look forward to it.”

 

She slipped off her boots, and pulled a cream casual shirt over her head. With trousers, she was more dressed than her uniform, but she didn’t feel it. There was something about feeling the weight of the ranked shoulder pads that made her uniform truly into a uniform. With a quick brush of her hair to tame errant strands, she left her quarters.

 

Saru, like Michael, Nambue and Three-Three, had quarters on the same side of the deck as Philippa. Over the decade she had captained the ship, social gatherings in each other’s quarters had become pleasantly common. Though on that particular night, she was visiting Saru alone. They spent time together regularly regardless, but Saru had recently been through season, and spent most of his evenings processing silk fibres. She couldn’t recall exactly when he had started sharing that time with her - his biology had been public since the Federation first encountered Kelpien and their keepers - but at some point over the years she had found a tradition in that time. She smiled to herself as she arrived outside his quarters and requested entry, knowing how she would find him.

 

“Captain, please come in.”

 

The door swept open, and he was exactly where she had pictured. Seated in the middle of his quarters, cushions and blankets piled together to form a place for his large body, legs splayed in each direction in a rare show of relaxation. His feet were bare, delicate hooves that almost ended in points, draped over pillows. Around him were several neat racks of fibre, shimmering in the light, and a relatively small pile of unsorted silk lay beside him. As usual his quarters smelled sweet, something like sandalwood and honey, more so after season. He moved to stand, but Philippa waved him back with a chuckle.

 

“I can see you have been busy.”

 

“Yes,” Saru looked about himself sheepishly, though with a little regret too. “There was not much left to process, I believe this will be finished tonight.”

 

Philippa took her usual seat beside him, gathering part of the silk strands onto her lap carefully.

 

“You may finally have your privacy back,” she joked.

 

“I like you here,” Saru replied simply, watching her run her fingers through the strings. It was hard not to, she didn’t think it was possible for them to be softer. She was quite sure she had spent one or two evenings at least over the years simply petting the strands and not much else.

 

“It is less fresh now,” he cleared his throat, “but I prepared food for us, Philippa.”

 

“Oh,” she looked down at where she had already settled herself in, and then back up at him apologetically, eliciting a small smile from him.

 

“I will fetch it for you.”

 

“Sorry Saru,” she said as he rose, clearing the distance between them and his eating area easily with his strides. He returned with a platter, and she felt a pang of guilt that she hadn’t noticed he had prepared a meal. It was piled high with various leaves and a few fruits, and looked crisp and perfect. She took a cherry tomato before she had even thanked him. Saru looked satisfied and settled back down beside her, pulling a few leaves for himself.

 

Philippa smiled happily to herself, beginning to untangle and comb out some of the strands on her lap. There was a skill to it she had never quite mastered, the strands were so fine and delicate, but it was relaxing work. The hum of the Shenzhou accompanied her, and they lapsed into companionable silence as they worked and ate.

 

The trick was to remain light-handed. Until they were woven into stronger threads, the strands were fragile and prone to coming apart. There were machines that could assist, but the Kelpien understandably refused the technology historically used to farm silkworms on Earth, disgusted by it. All Kelpien silk was woven by hand; a difficult task, but one that made the end product exquisite and deeply personal. For everything else he had left behind him at the colony, Saru made sure to uphold the small Kelpien cultures and traditions they had carved out for themselves following liberation.

 

Her thoughts turned to the Kelpien beside her, one of her oldest friends and comrades. He had changed much from the frightened creature that she and Mother Lene had rescued from his pen, but he had also never forgotten his roots. She was twenty three at the time, and Saru was twenty five - the final age of slaughter. Born, used, and then sent to be murdered and his body consumed. She had shed tears for all of the Kelpien back then, and for Saru too, whose existence - isolated from the others - was confused, miserable, and lonely.

 

She asked Mother Lene over communications about all the rescued Kelpien for years after, including Saru. He didn’t have a name then, only an identifier from the Ferasan that he refused once he was told he could refuse it. He was given the name Saru by Lene, and as Philippa understood it, it derived from words that roughly translated into the crude sentence of “reclusive, but something wonderful within”. Lene saw in him potential, and sent him to Starfleet with her blessing. Philippa and her captain had happily provided the official recommendations that Saru needed to enter the Academy, and when he sought her out as a graduated ensign to thank her, she had been overjoyed for him. As a Lieutenant Commander, and her Second Officer, she was proud of him.

 

She sighed contentedly, lifting the weft of silk she had been working on very carefully and placing it on an empty rack. She made sure it would remain before she removed her hands. It wasn’t perfect; she struggled to keep the strands intact beyond a metre or so in length, but they could still be woven into threads and used for smaller items. She looked over to catch Saru watching her again, and noted he had only added three wefts to his rack - usually he would easily produce five for her one. He was troubled, and she hoped not by her silk.

 

“Saru?”

 

The Kelpien surprised a little, blinking, and looking down at his own unfinished weft.

 

“Something on your mind?”

 

“I… yes, I apologise,” Saru replied, somewhat embarrassed. Being broken out of his thoughts didn’t seem to relieve him, so Philippa shifted her pillows and her rack and silk - carefully - closer to him.

 

“Talk to me?” she asked. Any fear or worry should always be tackled at the earliest opportunity, she felt, and Saru had been shaken in recent days. He was not concealing it any more, and that tended to indicate he was ready to discuss it.

 

“Captain,” Saru began with a little trepidation. “I wish to apologise again, for my… behaviour.”

 

Georgiou knew exactly what he was referring to; a diplomatic mission involving Caitians and Andorians a week prior. It was still unclear to Federation medical personnel what Kelpien ganglia specifically responded to and sensed, but the mission had proven that both Caitian and Andorian envoys triggered a response. Saru had been in a heightened state for all of it, exacerbated further by being in season, and then hostilities had broken out between the two envoys on the planet surface. He had been caught right in the middle, and, as the reports stated, did not assist security teams in detaining the assailants nor did he attempt diplomacy to diffuse the situation. He was beamed to Sickbay, suffering from palpitations and confusion. 

 

He had been frightened.

 

“You were in a uniquely difficult situation Saru, with many factors working against you,” Philippa replied. Her judgement of the matter had not changed - whilst it was the case that he had not fully performed his duty, there were valid biological and medical reasons behind his actions, and the incident was handled efficiently by other officers present. The crew was a team, not an automation. She had told him as such during the debriefing.

 

“Any other on this crew,” Saru near-whispered. “Would not have reacted as I did. Would not have failed in their duty as I did.”

 

“The duty was not failed, Saru. Being frightened is not a failure.”

 

She could tell from his expression that he didn’t believe it himself. It was not surprising - a huge number of cultures thought very little of the fearful and the timid, praising bravery and confidence over it. Saru’s anxiety, palpitations, and even fainting, had been a source of ridicule at the Academy. Even on the Shenzhou, with her hand-picked crew, she had occasionally heard misguided whispers.

 

Georgiou looked away, thinking about her words. It had been eating away at him, she could tell. Saru was quite transparent, she valued that of him, and he was braver than he gave himself credit for. Had he asked to be excused from the mission, she would have granted it. She would have granted the same of Connor, for any member of her crew who suffered such anxiety. That he attempted the mission showed the progress he had made from his roots.

 

“I worry, even now, that I am unsuitable as an officer. There is… a word for me, in your Standard.  _ Nuòfū _ .”

 

It only took a moment for her to understand the word spoken by him, untouched by the universal translator.  _ Coward _ .

 

“No,” She shook her head vehemently, twisting to face him somewhat. “Saru…”

 

She needed to provide him with some kind of context, some kind of bar. He had only his own experiences to draw from, and his words made her concerned that he was viewing himself as the outlier, the “weak link”. Her mind immediately fell back almost thirty years, when she had begun assisting in liberating farms as a fresh graduate ensign on her first deep space assignment. The Ferasan keepers hadn’t left the farm unattended as their instruments had reported, and she had been… taken hostage.

 

“Saru… I don’t want you to think I am infallible or… that I don’t also experience what you worry is weakness,” Philippa almost chewed her lip; an old habit that never quite died. The Kelpien tilted his head a little, confusion quite plain on his features, so she took a breath that was shakier than she’d like from the memories and continued.

 

“I have… begged for my life before. I am not proud of it, but only those among the living can be concerned about dignity.”

 

She swallowed. She’d let her eyes fall to the ground from shame she knew to be unfair on herself, and deliberately made sure to meet Saru’s eyes again. She knew she was often a source of strength for him, but in that she became a source of strength for herself too. His pupils had dilated a little, she couldn’t quite place the look.

 

“I was afraid. I wanted to live. So I have begged, pleaded… I have been terrified, too scared to move, frightened enough to shut down… I am not without fear.”

 

For a moment, there was silence, and she wondered if dismantling any illusions about her strength had been wise. Not that her chief science officer hadn’t seen her at least a little emotionally compromised before, they had been on many away missions together over the years. But this was different.

 

“You have never told me that before,” He said finally, and quietly.

 

“I won’t claim to know fear as you know it Saru,” she added quickly. “But I want you to know you’re not alone, that you aren’t weak when you need others.  _ I _ need others. You may feel weakened in the moment, but it is not weak _ ness _ .”

 

“There is strength in the herd,” He whispered.

 

“Yes,” Georgiou replied, shuffling closer to punctuate her point. “There is strength in  _ our _ herd. You have not let us down, and your fear does not let us down. If anything…”

 

She paused, searching for the words.

 

“Saru, your caution reminds us  _ all _ to be more careful. You give voice to our doubts. You ensure that we do not act rashly or without preparation. You are a valuable member of this crew.”

 

He let out a shaky breath, tense with emotion, so she added with a raised brow;

 

“That is why you and Michael always bicker of course, she brings the energy and intuition, even if she would deny it.”

 

He laughed then. Only a small laugh, more of a giggle, and immediately restrained, but true. He visibly relaxed, but then looked into her eyes searchingly, leaning over a little.

 

“There is something else too… Philippa Georgiou, may I kiss you?”

 

She startled somewhat, not having expected the question, before breaking out into a smile. Of course Saru would ask so politely. She nodded, waiting for the affectionate companionable peck on her cheek she imagined he intended.

 

 

Instead she startled a second time as he pressed his mouth to hers,  _ kissing _ her. For a moment she was motionless, staring blankly as she felt the sides of Saru’s… beak run along the corners of her lips. It was… smooth. Not really soft, but smooth, with a little rigidity. She faintly registered the silk strands slipping from her lap, clasping her hand over them to save them. One of his points caught her bottom lip, and her senses came rushing back, just in time for Saru to break off the kiss.

 

Philippa blinked, collecting herself. Of all the things she thought Saru might do after such a question, kissing her in that manner hadn’t been one of them. Not that Saru came from a culture with any concept of romantic overtones, but she had been caught quite by surprise. Oh, she knew he liked her - loved her even - but he had never acted on it before or indicated that he wanted to. It had been… years.  _ Years _ . Suddenly Philippa realised it had been more than long enough for the infatuation to have developed into something genuine. And it had, she knew. They would not be sitting in his quarters most evenings after season, weaving silk and sharing themselves if their relationship had not become genuine and trusting.

 

So that left the matter of her own feelings. Saru was among her two closest friends on the ship, and there was no question that she loved him. But attraction was quite another thing, something she had to think about. Philippa cast her mind back, thinking of the time they had shared; from her first memory of him in the farm to his arrival on the Shenzhou, nervous and with so much to prove. Their first off-duty hours together, Saru’s endearing tendency to babble. The first time he had shared his weaving with her, gifting her a hair tie that had ended up too soft to stay on. The time she taught him to waltz, and it didn’t matter that he looked ridiculous and she was a poor teacher. Their dinners together, and sometimes breakfasts too, and even lunches - they’d talk of stars, and he would listen enraptured by stories of her childhood and being able to look at the sky. They had spent shore leaves together, and the more she thought about it, she could remember times she had very nearly kissed Saru in the moment. She had dismissed her feelings at the time, if for no other reason than Saru’s distaste for the romantic and the sexual - after all, that was reason enough.

 

She took so long in silence, Saru began to look shameful.

 

“I… acted out of turn, Captain, I-“ 

 

“No, Saru,” She held up a hand to stop him, before anxiety got the better of him, but she didn’t continue immediately. Couldn’t continue immediately. She had never expected Saru to take such initiative, and hadn’t thought to take it herself. Even if she had, she would be hesitant to approach Saru. He was delicate. Perhaps not physically - he had some advantage as a Kelpien bull - but certainly emotionally. She knew his past, and she knew he was resistant to romantic or sexual relationships as a result. She wouldn’t have dreamed of kissing him… not without knowing he  _ wanted _ to be kissed. Now, she realised, he did. He did want to be kissed. Her closest and oldest comrade, confidant, friend, and every moment of the time they had spent together had been together but simply without the kissing. 

 

Philippa decided not to let another moment go to waste, setting aside the silk she had held and returning his chaste kiss as well she could; though she broke it for a moment to quickly whisper an apology after he jumped in surprise. The points of his beak caught her lips again as he leaned in and she decided she liked that. In fact, she liked him. She hadn’t given it enough acknowledgement before, she had always been so busy - but there was no one else on the ship she had shared so much of herself with than Saru. She rested her hands around his thin waist, experimentally flicking her tongue over his thin lips, and being rewarded with a small gasp she quickly took advantage of. It was certainly interesting, their mouths didn’t fit together at all, and there was a hardness to his beak she wouldn’t find in any usual mammalian life form. She liked that too.

 

Philippa pulled back and rested her forehead against his crest, finding she couldn’t keep the smile from her face. She felt young again, almost giddy, like she were in the Academy. She had been somewhat oblivious to her own interest, and detached from his, and the realisation of their mutual feelings was delightful. Saru’s eyes looked at her searchingly, and she stroked his cheek to reassure him.

 

“You didn’t, Saru. You didn’t act out of turn at all.”

 

He smiled back, an expression so rare for him that Philippa felt sure she could count the occasions she had seen it on her fingers. It was disarmingly endearing, in a crooked and clumsy sort of way. His hands hovered awkwardly between them, and she guided them to her waist before wrapping her arms back around his. He nodded shyly, and experimented a little to find his own way of embracing her.

 

“May I kiss you again?”

 

Philippa laughed gently, they were nuzzling, sharing air, lips still wet, holding each other like ten years had caught up to them - and it had.

 

“You do not need to have my permission to kiss me…”

 

“Oh, but I do.” 

 

She opened her mouth to protest, but he nuzzled reassuringly and she waited.

 

“I will never take, ever. I will always ask. Never take.”

 

It was then that she realised she had only rarely seen Saru actually touch anybody, and only through necessity or desperation usually. He wasn’t one for casual contact, freely given or taken.  _ Because of the farms _ . She closed her eyes for a moment and leaned into his nuzzle. Though it was a long time behind him, of course it would stay with him, just as many things stayed with her. He wanted to ask permission, because nobody had ever asked for his before. She was moved. 

 

“Saru… where  _ did _ I find you?”

 

“Ready to die, in a barn. I will never forget, Philippa.”

 

The question had been abstract, wondering how she had ended up with such a sensitive gentle friend, but Saru’s solemn answer confirmed that his past weighed on him when he sought permission.

 

“Yes. Yes, you can kiss me,” she breathed, gently reaching for one of his hands and closing her own around it. Saru met her lips again, a little less chaste, pressing his mouth against hers. It was… like nothing she had ever experienced before. She hadn’t exactly kissed many aliens - only one, as far as she could remember, an energetic Caitian in the Academy, and even Caitians had a closer resemblance to humans than Saru. She hadn’t even known that Saru  _ would _ kiss. It seemed an almost uniquely primate thing, others seemed to nuzzle or lick. His choosing to kiss as an expression of affection might be for her benefit more than his, she realised. But then, his life and past were unique, and Kelpien hadn’t had the freedom to discover what worked for themselves. It certainly worked for her though.

 

Philippa deepened their kiss, tasting him, pressing their mouths together as she leaned in even closer. There were things that were strange, things that would take some getting used to. His tongue was large and encompassing, though he had the heat of another warm-blooded creature which sent a jolt through her as he met her shyly. She took no small pleasure in that her kiss was beginning to elicit small gasps from Saru, as he became more breathless, more wanting. Hearing the demure and nervous Kelpien express himself though, however restrained, was very appealing.

 

She ran her hands up his waist, feeling bumps and ridges under the silks, and then onto the bare skin of his back, as smooth as his beak. His body was segmented, and she couldn’t resist following the lines with her hands before she came across the two larger idents along his back. She ran her fingertips into them, fascinated by the recesses. She only realised they were almost certainly for his ganglia when Saru gasped and whimpered against her mouth, pulling out of their kiss.

 

“Saru, l’m sorry,” Phillipa worriedly moved her hands to his front, nuzzling him as he panted lightly. Now that she had a moment to look, she noticed he was trembling, tense, and she felt pang of guilt. His arms were either side of her, bracing his upper body, but they shook trying to support him. His eyes half closed, his expression a mix of anxiety and longing.

 

“I am all right,” Saru said, and she wondered if it was more to himself than to her. “They… it hurts a little. And this is all new.”

 

She rubbed what she hoped were soothing circles onto him and nodded. She didn’t want to stop, but it served as a reminder that Saru had already given a great deal of himself that evening, and she wouldn’t push for more. In addition… there were protocols and tests to be observed where interspecies relationships were concerned, and kissing already carried a risk. Sooner or later they would need to discuss their intentions with Doctor Nambue. That was something for another evening though, Saru needed time to calm, and she needed time to think about things. Philippa moved closer so that they could hug, and Saru nuzzled into the crook of her neck, regaining his breath.

 

“I certainly didn’t expect this when I came over tonight,” Her words were met with a nod from Saru, and he timidly brought a hooved hand to touch her cheek as he met her eyes.

 

“I am… surprised myself. I did not think I… ‘had it in me’ to ask.”

 

“What prompted you?”

 

“We have shared almost thirty years in one way or another, ten of them closely. I had already concluded there is nowhere I would rather be than by your side.”

 

“You big romantic, you.”

 

She kissed him again. He hadn’t finished, but she couldn’t help it, now that they had crossed the threshold. His crest and tips of his cheek ridges had flushed a delightful pink, almost purple.

 

“I-I… you called this herd  _ our _ herd. That means more to me than I can explain, I want so much to  _ belong _ . I did not belong in the farms, or in the colony, or at the academy, or even on the ships I served on before this. With you, I  _ belong _ . Philippa, I...”

 

Saru took a breath to steady himself, and she knew what was coming next.

 

“I want to spend my life with you. As we do right now.”

 

She smiled, bringing her own hand to stroke his crest down to his cheek.

 

“I love you too,” She replied, laughing a little as his face lit up, in part due to her confession, and in part because she provided him with the words he couldn’t think of to explain his feelings.

 

“I love you. Yes _. Yes, _ ” He tried a spontaneous kiss in his joy, and it was as endearingly clumsy and genuine as his others. It led to another, and then another, but Philippa pulled away before they could fall back onto the pillows and take it further. She doubted Saru had given too much thought to the “further” at that time, and rushing would be much too harmful. She still gave out a groan and kissed him a final time, raising her hands to his cheeks to still him as she broke off.

 

“Saru, let’s not rush. There is time.”

 

He nodded, leaning into her hands, and she’d never seen him so happy and content. She knew, just from his expression, that if he asked her to stay the night, he really would be asking to remain close and nothing more. She also knew it was getting harder to make herself leave.

 

“I know. Perhaps we should…” Saru paused, taking her hands in his own, and his eyes darted a little. That meant he was going to surprise her. She loved it when he did that.

 

“We should both retire for the night. We did not process the last of the silk after all, so I will need to extend my invitation to tomorrow evening too.”

 

Philippa grinned widely, not disappointed at all with the mischief in his words. She nuzzled him then stood, waiting as he carefully navigated himself back up then walked her to the door. She stood at the threshold and looked up at him; he had lowered himself as he always did to talk with humans, but he still made for a towering figure.

 

“And I accept. Thank you, Saru, for this evening.”

 

He flushed again, his hand had been hovering near the panel to open the door, but he hesitated.

 

“Philippa… may I kiss you goodnight?”

 

“Please do.”

 

In hindsight, it was probably a mistake. In her willingness to meet his lips again, Philippa moved toward him, and on his part, Saru would always follow where she led. It was wholly predictable and unsurprising, then, that he ended up on the floor again so that their bodies could be close. She crushed their mismatched mouths together, sliding down to her knees without breaking their kiss so she could hold his thin frame to hers. His hands clung to her back, but he ran one through her hair and pulled her even closer, and she  _ really _ didn’t want to leave. She wanted to stay right there, and kiss him silly. The thought was so indignant and childish that she giggled despite herself, forced to break the kiss she had been so adamant about continuing.

 

“Whoops,” She said, without a hint of guilt, and Saru chuckled with her as they cuddled on his floor. It was pleasing to hear his laugh, quiet as it was. He looked more at peace than he had done over the past week. She felt it too. Nothing had ever felt awkward between them, she couldn’t ask for a more rewarding and deeply companionable friendship - but there had been some things left unsaid. She resolved to make more effort to say them.

 

“Thank you, Philippa. For allowing me to kiss you.”

 

In her giddiness, she had all sorts of playful flirtatious remarks she could make, but she pursed her lips and nuzzled him, resisting. There would be time for that, time for everything, and despite how evidently pleased with their situation he was, Saru was still trembling. She sighed happily, caressing his back - though she was careful to avoid the indentations this time round.

 

“I hope you’ll do the same tomorrow evening.”

 

He nodded, eyes wide. She was already looking forward to it, and it made leaving a little easier. She stood up, finally resolved to go, and held out her hands for Saru. He took them in his own as he stood, running his four thumbs over her knuckles. They were amusingly mismatched in body, but if she were truthful with herself, she had believed for a long time they were matched in spirit.

 

“Goodnight, Saru.”

 

He pressed the panel and the door slid open. The moment she was greeted with the corridors of the ship behind her, it was much easier to slip into a professional tone and make herself retire to her own quarters. She squeezed the hand that still remained in hers, and brought it to her lips. His breath hitched, and she smiled at him in fondness.

 

“Goodnight Philippa,” Saru whispered, and she gave him a final nod before leaving.

 

It wasn’t far to her quarters, but far enough that the spring in her step would probably be evident to her senior staff, should any meet her in the corridor. It would be fun to see Three-Three and Detmer gossip and guess together, as they no doubt would. For Saru’s sake though, she would give no indication or speak anything of it until he felt comfortable.

 

She let herself into her quarters, and as soon as the door closed, she let the silly grin return. She knew there would be a few difficulties; discussing it with Doctor Nambue would be one of them. Her own parents might be disappointed in her choice of partner too. Saru’s colony was bound to have the biggest objection of all, they did not all feel as approving of Saru’s decision to leave as the now-elder Mother Lene. It would be hardest on Saru.

 

They had faced the last ten years together though. They could face whatever the future held together too.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this! I'm not sure I was able to pull it together quite how I wanted to, but I wanted to reach my goal of one (just one!) finished fic (and not ficlet) in 2017, and I've done it! Considering I have another Philippa/Saru fic half-finished though, this might not be the last of the Shenzhou's resident goofy over-50's.
> 
> Ah yes, also, hopefully I'm not wrong in this (which is a possiblity), but Nuòfū is Mandarin, which I believe does mean coward. My headcanon about "Earth Standard" is that it's made up mostly of Mandarin (and of the extremely little I know, the word for coward is not among that). My tumblr contains more musings about language on the ship, and how translators work, and there's a comic too (and another comic coming soon). Saru doesn't know much Earth Standard, but it's a bit worrying which words he does know.


End file.
